


The Means of An End

by Rainbow_Transform



Series: Time Flies Past [4]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie) Trailer, Awesome Shuri (Marvel), Brotp, Civil War Team Iron Man, Gen, Genius Shuri (Marvel), HER INTELLIGENCE DOES NOT CANCEL TONY'S, I'm not ready for it, Post Captain America Civil War, SHURI AND TONY ARE FRIENDS, T'Challa (Marvel) Is a Good Bro, Tony Stark Feels, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Has Issues, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, and vise versa
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-11
Updated: 2018-03-26
Packaged: 2019-03-30 00:53:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,110
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13939098
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rainbow_Transform/pseuds/Rainbow_Transform
Summary: Snippets of before and after Civil War/Infinity War





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> IF YOU'RE NOT READY FOR INFINITY WAR, CLAP YOUR HANDS!  
> IF YOU'RE NOT READY FOR INFINITY WAR, CLAP YOUR HANDS!  
> IF YOU'RE NOT READY FOR INFINITY WAR, CLAP YOUR HANDS!  
> IF YOU'RE NOT READY FOR INFINITY WAR, CLAP YOUR HANDS!  
> IF YOU'RE NOT READY FOR INFINITY WAR, CLAP YOUR HANDS!  
> IF YOU'RE NOT READY FOR INFINITY WAR, CLAP YOUR HANDS!  
> IF YOU'RE NOT READY FOR INFINITY WAR, CLAP YOUR HANDS!  
> IF YOU'RE NOT READY FOR INFINITY WAR, CLAP YOUR HANDS!  
> IF YOU'RE NOT READY FOR INFINITY WAR, CLAP YOUR HANDS!  
> IF YOU'RE NOT READY FOR INFINITY WAR, CLAP YOUR HANDS!
> 
> (Don't own the Avengers :()
> 
> Edit: OH MY LORD JESUS CHRIST, SHITS GOING DOWN INFINITY WARS COMES OUT TOMORROW I CANT SEE IT UNTIL MAY 12 SOMEONE PUT ME OUT OF MY MISERY! MY BABY! MY TONY!

Tony gifts the Compound, so that the Avengers have a place to train, and be safe.

 

Tony gifts the Compound so that they have a place to have Movie Night.

 

Tony gifts the Compound so the Avengers can be a _family._

 

They throw it back in his face like it’s nothing.

* * *

 

The first time Tony has nightmares he doesn’t know why. FRIDAY monitors, but she can only do so much. FRIDAY’s still young, and Tony doesn’t say anything because he doesn’t want to pressure her into being something she can’t be.

 

Tony yawns as he shuffles toward the kitchen. He’s got some leftover tea that Rhodey gave to him. It’s Mama Rhode’s tea and it always helps Tony fall asleep without nightmares. But when he gets there, he searches through the cabinets only to find nothing.

 

Blinking, Tony turns his head towards the living room. All of the Avengers are sitting on or around the couch, drinking out of cups. Tony hears one of them praising Wanda for finding this “really good tea” and for “sharing” and that “it was so deep in the cabinet”.

 

And Tony _knows_ that it’s Mama Rhode’s tea. He turns back, and subjects himself to a sleepless night in the lab.

* * *

 

The second time, Tony is tired, upset, and _scared_ . He doesn’t know why his mind is torturing him with this kind of information. He’s been going to a therapist for a few weeks, and it’d helped. _Really_ . It helped him eat more often (not as often as the therapist _liked,_ but they were getting there), and slept for at least half of the night.

 

He doesn’t sleep for even a third of the night now. Instead, he works on gauntlets, wings, armor, shields, and spy things for Nat. FRIDAY keeps him up-to-date with the time, and when each of the Avengers get up.

 

Wanda’s always up early, though. Tony doesn’t know why.

* * *

 

Tony’s nightmares worsen the third time.

* * *

 

The fourth time, Tony barely falls asleep.

* * *

 

The fifth time Tony’s mind hurts.

* * *

 

The sixth time, Tony doesn’t leave his room.

* * *

 

The seventh time, Tony doesn’t even _go_ to his room.

* * *

 

Tony’s nightmares got progressively worse as the months passed.

* * *

 

Tony should have seen it coming. Really. He should’ve. But he didn’t. Instead, he ignored the signs and ignored how much Wanda’s hatred had deepened in her heart. FRIDAY asks with a hesitated _“Boss?”_ and Tony just shakes his head. “It’s okay, Fri,” he says. “I’ll bring it up with Steve at a later time.

 

FRIDAY’s grown for the past five months, and Tony’s proud of her. She’s learned snark, sass, and knows how to deal her way around the Compound. She hasn’t surpassed JARVIS, _yet_ , but Tony knows it’s only a matter of time.

 

_“I can alert the police, Boss. Or, call Xavier?”_

 

“No. Who’s Xavier?”

 

_“He runs a mutant school. I managed to find him.”_

 

“By accident?”

 

_“No.”_

 

“On purpose?”

 

_“I worry.”_

 

“I know.”

* * *

 

Tony brings it up to Steve, and Steve _brushes him off_.

 

“She’s just a kid. She can’t control her powers yet, it’s okay.”

 

“Ste-”

 

“Tony. Relax. You don’t see any of us complaining about nightmares.”

 

“But St-”

 

“You know, I can’t believe that you’re trying to blame Wanda for _losing control,_ after what you’d done at the last mission.”

 

“I already explain-”

 

“Goodbye, Tony. Go get some rest, you look tired. Oh, and don’t tell the others about this. We don’t want anyone to fear her, right?”

 

_“Should I call Xavier, Boss?”_

 

“No, Fri. I think we’ll keep this in-house.”

 

_“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”_

 

“Neither do I, baby girl. Neither do I.”

* * *

 

Tony brings it up to Sam, when he goes to talk to him. “I’ve been having nightmares,” he tells him. “They’re really vivid. They aren’t supposed to be that vivid.”

 

“It’s your guilt manifesting itself,” Sam says. He doesn’t say anything else, and Tony blinks.

 

“Are you sure?”

 

“Yeah. That’s how it always is, Tony.”

 

“It can’t be anyone else?”

 

Sam stops. “Tony,” he says. “Are you _implying_ someone’s messing with your brain?” He looks angry. Tony puts up his hands.

 

“No, no,” he says. “It’s hypothetical.”

* * *

 

Tony doesn’t talk to Clint, but he _knows_ Clint isn’t going to do anything.

 

Wanda’s like his _kid,_ so Clint isn’t going to do anything to stop her, and it’d be like Tony’s the villain.

 

He doesn’t say anything.

* * *

 

“I think someone’s making me have nightmares.”

 

“Stark, that’s ridiculous.”

 

“Nat-”

 

“Are you suggesting that Wanda is messing with you?”

 

“N-”

 

“I knew you’d sink low, but that low? God, she can’t control her powers.”

 

“I wa-”

 

“I don’t even want to hear it.”

* * *

 

Tony doesn’t sleep anymore. Pepper, Rhodey, and FRIDAY worries.

 

(Vision’s with Wanda, her trying to convince him that them dating is a “good idea” despite him being only a year old.) (Does that make Wanda a pedophile?) (Because Vision’s only a year old.) (But he looks older.) (Sleep-deprived Tony isn’t the best Tony.)

* * *

 

The Avengers give him a fucking _intervention._

 

“Tony, we’re here to clear something up once and for all,” Steve tells him.

 

“Watch, Stark,” Clint snaps. “Wanda, hey, are you messing with Tony?”

 

She blinks. “Messing? Well, I can’t control my powers very well and they _might’ve_ accidentally messed with Stark’s mind.”

 

“See? Accidents,” Natasha says briskly and Sam nods.

 

“Stop asking around now, Stark,” Clint says before they leave.

* * *

 

His nightmare that night? It’s the worst one he’d seen so far.

* * *

 

Tony’s nightmares continue, and worsen and Tony _breaks._

 

He leaves the Compound and goes back to his Tower.

 

It’s better. So much better. He can _sleep_.

* * *

 

Civil War mess happens.

 

Tony’s heart hurts.

* * *

 

He recommends Vision to a therapist. “This will help us,” Tony tells him.

 

“You don’t have the best role models for good human relationships. You were just thrust into this life without any warning. But that’s okay. This’ll help us out.”

* * *

 

He spys Vision reading a book titled _The Signs of Toxic Relationships._

 

Tony almost cries with relief.

* * *

 

He doesn’t quite know how to work with T’Challa. He’s hiding the Ex-Avengers, isn’t he? And it’s hard to place himself out on a limb. The Dora Milaje seem _nicer_ than normal, and Tony’s pretty sure it’s because they’ve actually met Rogers and his ragtag team.

* * *

 

_“Boss? Pepper called. She asked if you can take on a few board meetings.”_

 

“Yeah. How many?”

 

_“Just three. She said the first one is for SI, the second for Wakanada rejoining the world, and the third… for the Rogers and his team’s punishment if they come back.”_

 

“Mmm,” Tony jabs a screwdriver into SI’s new phone. “The first two I can get to, but the last one is difficult.”

 

_“You don’t wanna go?”_

 

“I _do._ I do. But I know that Ross is in jail, and the other Ross (the better one) is in charge, so he won’t be as hard. Plus, there’s the fact that this tablet’s supposed to have holograms (which it will), but I’m having some trouble implementing certain things.”

 

_“The holograms of you as a kid, rocking out to any AC/DC?”_

 

“Those, and the new phones I’ve recorded.”

 

_“Those are funny.”_

 

“Yeah, and anyone smart enough to hack it’ll, get a nice surprise.”

 

_“Wakanda?”_

 

“Wakanda.”

* * *

 

“You put a hologram _specifically_ for my country?”

 

Tony pulls two wires out and readjusts them. “Uh-huh.”

 

“ _Why_?”

 

He yanks a blue wire out. “Why not?”

 

“The technologists and Shuri are quite upset.”

 

“Why?”

 

“They wanted to see the hologram of you dancing again.”

 

“Huh,” Tony closes the door. “That’s funny. I’ve used that same video for most of my electronics. I just wanted a kid to be happy.”

 

“Shuri’s also angry. She can’t hack the game you’d implemented.”

 

“Yeah. She’s smarter than me, but I’ve got _some_ experience. She’ll be able to hack it later.”

 

“Later?”

 

“When she’s older.”

 

“How much older?”

 

“Nice try, Kit-Cat. She’ll know when.” Tony places the prototype aside and the call ends.

* * *

 

Tony’s nightmares hadn’t gone away, but they aren’t as vivid as before.

 

They also aren’t as frequent. (Which is how Tony knows that Wanda kept doing it, ever _after_ Tony told the others. And _after_ he’d made it known what was happening when he moved out.)

 

_“Boss?”_

 

“What’s up?”

 

_“King T’Challa’s calling.”_

 

“Answer,” Tony squints at the Avengers’ designs he’d been planning.

 

“Mr Stark,” T’Challa’s smooth voice fills the room.

 

“Hey, Kitty,” Tony says. He opens up Black Widow’s file and then crumbles them and throws them into the garbage. FRIDAY gets to work erasing it quickly.

 

“It seems that a visit is in order.”

 

“Yeah?”

 

“Shuri is itching to meet you. She wishes to… crush you.”

 

“Yeah, a lot of people wanna do that. Is she still angry over the game?”

 

“Quite.”

 

“Ha.”

* * *

 

He’s barely out of bed when someone’s knocking at the door. Blearily rubbing his eyes, he opens it to T’Challa’s poker face and his sister’s bright grin.

 

“What’re _those_ ?” She asks and Tony blinks. He points a finger at her. “It’s seven thirty in the morning, and I haven’t had any coffee. _No memes_.”

 

She frowns. “At least my FBI agent would have appreciated me.”

 

“Your FBI agent cries every night because you don’t go to sleep until three o’clock. He has a _family_. I’ve spoken to him.”

 

T’Challa rolls his eyes. “Why?” He says.

 

“Just wait ‘till Peter gets here. He’s your age.” Tony tells Shuri.

 

“I will corrupt him,” she says. Tony nods.

 

“Too late, though,” he tells her and she slams her fist down.

 

“Damn it!” She shrieks.

* * *

 

It’s different, Tony realizes, from Bruce. Shuri’s mind takes leaps and big gaps through her process and Tony can replicate it. But she’s just like him when he was young: doing things that shouldn’t be done. Peter and Shuri are the next best thing the world has to offer, and Tony knows. He knows that them _together_ they will be able to save the world from anything.

 

Tony’s part isn’t over yet, but he knows it will be soon enough. But sitting with Shuri on his right helping him build Extremis, he knows that it’s going to be okay.

* * *

 

When Tony lays dying, at his last war, he stares up at the stars. The suit is crushed around him, he’s just laying there, and FRIDAY’s talking to him. But his part is over now.

 

_“Boss? Is this what happened to JARVIS?”_

 

“Not exactly.”

 

_“Your heart rate’s dropping.”_

 

“Yeah.”

 

 _“Don’t leave me,”_ she begs, but Tony just smiles. It hurts, but it’s starting to numb.

 

“You won’t be lonely.” He tells her. “You’ve got DUM-E, ButterFingers, U, Shuri, Peter.”

 

 _“But they aren’t_ **_you_ ** _!”_

 

“You’ll be okay.”

 

_“No! No! Please!”_

 

“It’s okay…”

 

_“Boss? Boss!”_

 

“...”

* * *

 

“Mr Stark? Mr Stark!”

 

“Tony!”

 

“Iron Man!”

 

“Tony, answer!”

 

“Stark, stop playing!”

 

“Peter…”

 

“Mr Stark! Why aren’t you answering? Karen! What’s wrong?”

 

_“FRIDAY is shut down.”_

 

“Why?”

 

_“Tony Stark is dead.”_

* * *

 

When the fight is over, that’s when people mourn. Tony Stark was the one who’d learned what the people wanted and bowed to their whims. Iron Man was the one who’d flew a nuke into space.

 

Pepper cries.

 

Rhodey doesn’t speak to the Exvengers.

 

T’Challa doesn’t leave his country for a few days.

 

The Dora Milaje sit for long periods of time.

 

Shuri doesn’t enter her lab for weeks.

 

Peter patrols as Spider-Man for hours without pause.

 

The Exvengers don’t mourn like they would if any one of them died. Instead, they attend the funeral, and doesn’t say anything.

 

Vision turns away from Wanda’s advances, and sits by Tony’s grave for two months. He disappears, and they don’t hear from him again.

* * *

 

Tony gifts FRIDAY, and the bots to Peter and Shuri.

 

_They aren’t going to be much trouble, promise. They are intelligent creatures, guys. Treat ‘em like they are, cause I know you would. Take care of Vision, too, because he’s going to be “truly” alone for the first time in his life._

 

But when they enter the lab, DUM-E, ButterFingers and U are sitting in the middle of it, staring at the chair and prototypes. DUM-E beeps at Peter, running circles and opening and closing his claw; ButterFingers shrieks, and U is silent.

 

 _“Guys,”_ FRIDAY says, and the two teens are taken back. _“Boss is dead. The Mechanic is dead.”_

 

The beeps trail off, and then DUM-E lowers his claw, and shuts down. ButterFingers and U follow suit; and then FRIDAY does, too. Everything in the Tower and the Compound shuts down, and then the emergency power comes back.

 

Peter and Shuri are left, alone, in a lab of the greatest mind of his century.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I couldn't leave it alone. Plot bunnies. Enjoy!

It’s years down the line before Shuri finally cracks the code in Tony’s game. She’d locked away the phone and didn’t even glance at it until her children pulled it out of its hiding spot and show it to her. 

 

“We can’t crack it,” they told her, staring. Her fingers shake, and she opens the familiar game. The Black Panther comes on screen and it meows like a kitten. Shuri’s eyes fill with tears and she sinks down, cradling the game. 

 

Her children go to find their father.

* * *

 

KuKhanya, May, and Ubomi come running in with Peter. He stares at her, glances at the game and tells their children to go to their rooms.  _ “Umama _ is just thinking  of someone we used to know. Go.”

 

“Listen to your father,” Shuri chokes out, and they turn, fleeing. Peter sits next to her, doesn’t glance over, and says, quietly “I still miss him.”

 

“I know.”

 

“It feels like he’s still here.”

 

“Yeah.”

 

“Did he make that?”

 

“I got it when I was sixteen. He’d given it to me. Told T’Challa that I would crack it when I’m older. When he  _ died,  _ I…” She swallowed.

 

“You stowed it away.”

 

“Yeah.”

 

“You know Karen?”

 

“The first suit Tony’d given you?”

 

“Yeah. You know why I asked you to make me a completely new one and not upgrade my old one?”

 

“Because you’re a boy.”

 

_ “Excuse you,” _ he shot back in a snooty white voice. “I’m a man.” 

 

Shuri giggles.

 

“No. It’s because the suit’s the first thing Tony gave me. It… reminds me of him.”

 

The game feels cold under Shuri’s hands. “I’m suppose to crack it,” she whispers. Peter nods, and offers his own hand. “If you’re going to try, I’m not going to stop you,” he tells her. “But I’m not going to let it mess up your sleep schedule.”

 

Shuri’s lips curl into a smile. “You sound like my brother,” she says.

 

“Considering we haven’t heard from him in a few weeks, that’s an improvement.”

 

“He’s taken a vacation.”

 

“Yeah, from everything.”

 

“He deserves it.”

 

“Always.”

* * *

 

Shuri shrieks, throwing the game away from her. “This is impossible!” She screams. The children are in school, and Peter sighs.  _ “NADĚJE, _ monitor Shuri’s blood pressure.”

 

_ “Monitoring Creator’s states.” _

 

“Ha, ha,” Shuri scowls.  _ “NADĚJE, _ cancel order.”

 

_ “Order canceled.” _

 

“Still haven’t figured out how to get them human-like?”

 

“Nope.”

 

“You’ll figure it out.”

 

“Do  _ you _ know?” Shuri asked, jabbing a finger at him from behind, eyes locked on the code streaming steadily from the computer screen.

 

“It’s Tony’s secret.”

 

“He took it to the grave,” Shuri smiles grimly. “I would have loved to know it.”

 

_ “NADĚJE,  _ could you order some pizza?”

 

_ “From where, Creator’s Second?” _

 

“I don’t know, surprise me?”

 

_ “I am not programmed for that.” _

 

Peter sighs. Shuri bangs her fist against the computer’s desk. “Hey,” Peter says grabbing it gently. “We’re not hurting the computer; it hasn’t done anything.”

 

_ “This _ is one of the reasons I  _ hate _ Tony. But the code is beautiful and complex, and it seems just like… something I’ve seen before.”

 

“Why don’t we try it, together?” Peter suggests. 

 

“I’m smarter than you, Peter.”

 

“I know, Shuri. But  _ maybe _ you need a fresh set of eyes. You’ve been working on this as a sixteen-year-old, and,” he checks his watch. “Now it’s been six days, four hours, thirteen minutes, twenty-six seconds. Twenty-seven seconds. Twenty-eight. Twenty-nine. Thirty. Thirty-o”

 

“I get it!” She says yanking her hands back. 

 

“You’re also running on six hours of sleep, spread across those six days. An hour a day, Shuri. An hour.”

 

“It isn’t my fault,” she mumbles. “My mind runs through eighty-thousand scenarios per minute.”

 

“Yes, which is why I want to help.” Peter leans over, pressing his lips gently on Shuri’s. “Let me help you?”

 

She pushes him away. “Fine, you puppy-dog boy.”

* * *

 

It takes them three months to finally crack the code, and they both are wide-eyed, slack-jawed as they stare at the hologram. 

 

_ “Hey, Shuri,” _ Tony Stark says. He’s in his lab, eyes bright and he smiles.  _ “This is going to be pretty weird, huh? But, listen, do you have Peter there? You do remember Peter right?” _

 

The two adults grip each other’s arms.  _ “Ah, you guys are basically inseparable. I’m even sure that you guys are going to get married, too. Maybe have a couple kids. Four, I’d guess. This is for everyone I’d left behind, basically. I’m not going to lie to you guys. I don’t expect to win this fight. I’ve… got something Thanos really wants. Something he’s been craving. But he’ll have to kill me before I reveal anything to him.” _

 

_ “I’m going to go with Rhodey, because he’s my best friend. Rhodey’s been with me through thick and thin, wouldn’t take my shit or my money. ‘Charity,’ he’d called it. But… he’d invited me to his room, put up with DUM-E for years. I really hope his kids know what a good father he’s going to be.” _

 

(Rhodey’s been dead for three years.)

 

_ “Pepper… she’s the love of my life. She couldn’t take me being a hero, and honestly? I never expected her to. She’s different. Doesn’t take my shit, keeps my mind on track, has 12% of my company,”  _ Tony’s smile is thin. _ “She’s the best thing anyone could ask for. Happy’s being intertwined with her because he’s the best boxing buddy-slash-driver I could ever ask for. He’s the best person to talk to.” _

 

(Both Pepper and Happy left the country. Last Peter and Shuri heard of them, they remet up and had been tanning by the beach together drinking and swapping stories of other places they’d been since the kids took over the company and they’d left.)

 

_ “The Avengers,”  _ here Tony’s face darkens just slightly.  _ “They’re following Roger’s lead. I don’t know what they’re doing now. Hopefully some sense has been knocked into them. Scott’s got a daughter, and Clint’s got a whole fucking  _ **_family_ ** _. They’ll grow soon.” _

 

(They’re still together. The only difference is that there’s no one to be their scapegoat anymore. It’s rather sad.)

 

_ “The New Avengers are the my pride and joy, honestly. They’re the best team anyone can ask for, and they act like a family. They’re teens, but their better together than apart. I’m proud of them, and I hope they know this.” _

 

(They do, they really do. Shuri swallows, hard, and Peter’s arm tightens.)

 

_ “Peter’s my first ‘mission’ so to say. Clint’s not the only one to recruit Avengers. I know Peter, and he’s going to do things with or without someone’s permission. I just hope he knows the sacrifices, and how hard it is. Especially if you’re dating a civilian. Pretty sure Shuri’s okay with that, though,”  _ Tony smiled bitterly.  _ “Just know… I’m always going to be proud of you, kid. Anything you do. Except the things I did, and the things I wouldn’t do.” _

 

_ “Shuri…”  _ Tony huffed.  _ “You’ve either turned forty-seven, which is when the code gets easier, or you’d finally asked for help.”  _ He raises an eyebrow.  _ “What took you so long? The game’s designed to know if you’re working with someone else, and it’s better to figure out… you know. A place. How’s Vision, by the way? The Bots? FRIDAY?” _

 

(Vision disappeared, years ago. Peter heard a rumor, once, about a man with a stone in his forehead who was helping others. When asked, he’d reply “It’s what my grandfather would want,” and turn away. They haven’t heard from FRIDAY since she’d broken the news that Tony was dead, and the bots are still shut down. They’re clean, spick-span even though they aren’t ‘alive’ anymore.)

 

_ “Vision’s gone, if I’m really thinking ahead. He’s… upset, probably. Angry, scared. Hopefully he’s going to a therapist. If FRIDAY’s shut down, you just got to rewire her to accept you as her new boss; she’d understand. The bots are different, and you can’t trick them into coming back online. The only ones who can do that is JARVIS. I didn’t have enough time to implement it. She’s learning, and she’ll continue learning.” _

 

_ “That’s probably it. Um. Oh! Kit-Cat said you liked this one video of me dancing. Welp, here’s a side-by-side of me as sixteen, twenty-five, thirty, and thirty-five doing it. Oh… tell T’Challa that it didn’t matter he’d kept the Exvengers. It was better that they were in Wakanada rather than them loose on the world.”  _  Tony sighs.  _ “If I survive this, I’m thinking maybe,  _ **_maybe_ ** _ , I’ll consider going on that date with you.” _

 

And Shuri  _ understands. _ After Tony died, T’Challa grew distant for a time before coming back. He didn’t marry, despite the councils’ insistence that he  _ “must have a wife, or husband,” _ and T’Challa had laughed with Shuri. 

 

“They can’t make me,” he tells her. “I can’t, Shuri. For right now, I can’t.” And his eyes were distant, in a place Shuri couldn’t follow. 

 

“Who broke your heart, brother?” Shuri had asked. “Who held your heart tight in their grip, and hurt it?”

 

“Someone who is longer with us,” T’Challa told her. (And for all her genius, she didn’t ask for help for Tony’s game, and didn’t figure out it was him that T’Challa gave his heart to.)

Shuri and Peter replay the message twenty times over. So much that KuKhanya had come downstairs, and blinked at the sight of her parents watching a strange man. “I’ve seen him,” she said. “On TV. They said he was smart.”

 

“Not smarter than me,” Shuri jokes. 

 

KuKhanya shrugs. “I don’t know,  _ Umama,  _ he seems smarter than Father.”

 

Peter mock-gasped and Shuri burst into a round of giggles.

* * *

 

The next time T’Challa visited, Shuri showed him the video. He swallowed, reached out and brushed through the hologram. 

 

“Why didn’t you tell me, before?”

 

“He must’ve made some last-minute additions to it before he’d died. See? The code of… dancing is  _ decades _ old, but the one where he’s talking? That’s the day before he died. See? See the difference in color of the code?”

 

“Yes.”

 

There’s silence, and then Shuri asks. “Why didn’t you tell me about you and him?”

 

T’Challa’s smile is bitter, small, and he replies with: “There was no point, sister. Remembering and loving the dead like family is different from a lovers’ death. It’s more painful.”

 

“Especially since you’re… the Black Panther?”

 

“Yes, Shuri. Especially since that.”

* * *

 

When they turn and exit the lab, they go to the children sitting around eating dinner. Peter has a  _ Kiss the Cook, He’s Spider-Man _ apron on and is serving chicken parasame around the table. “Uncle T’Challa!” They all shriek, and he smiles. 

 

“Eat,” Shuri tells them, giving them the mother-eye. KuKhanya sighs, and Shuri looks at her.

 

“You are the Heir to Wakanda,” she tells her daughter. “You have to do things you don’t like, KuKhanya.”

 

KuKhanya pokes at her food. “I don’t  _ want _ it,” she mumbles. “Not if there’s all these rules and things to go with it. Especially making a heir?” She scowls. “Why can’t Ubomi or May do it?”

 

“If you don’t marry, that’s okay. But that means making a heir falls onto one of your siblings’ shoulder. They’re still young, aren’t they?”

 

“May’s three years younger, and Ubomi’s a year younger than May.”

 

“Don’t talk back to your mother,” Peter says from the kitchen.

 

“Daaaaaaaaaaaaaad,” she whines playfully.

* * *

 

After dinner, T’Challa asks if the children wish to hear a story. They are excited, elated, because ‘Uncle T’Challa’s stories are the best! Better than Dad’s!’

 

“There was once a boy, young and full of life. But life was cruel to the boy, and gave him a bad father and a neglectful mother. But, mercy was kind, and gave the boy a nice frien-”

 

“What’s his name?”

 

“His name?” T’Challa smiles. “It’s Tony.”

* * *

 

No one notices a spark fizzing from the game they’d left on. No one sees something traveling through wires and electrical places. There’s something in the lab, but no one sees it.

 

DUM-E, U, and ButterFingers come online, slowly, sensing something unfamiliar yet fatherly. FRIDAY overrides NADĚJE and with a whispery, fluttery, little-girl-meeting-her-father, whispers:

 

“Boss?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FIND ME AT TUMBLR @RAINBOWTRANSFORM TO ASK, YELL, OR GIVE ME A REQUEST TO WRITE ANYTHING ELSE! Enjoy!
> 
> ^.^

**Author's Note:**

> I'M NOT READY I'M NOT READY I'M NOT READY I'M NOT READY  
> I'M NOT READY I'M NOT READY I'M NOT READY I'M NOT READY I'M NOT READY I'M NOT READY I'M NOT READY I'M NOT READY I'M NOT READY I'M NOT READY I'M NOT READY I'M NOT READY  
> I'M NOT READY I'M NOT READY I'M NOT READY I'M NOT READY  
> I'M NOT READY I'M NOT READY I'M NOT READY I'M NOT READY
> 
> I'M NOT READY FOR THIS INFINITY WAR!
> 
> (Visit my tumblr @rainbowtransform)


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